Quilt of Stories
This feature is part of the Platform Series, which was made possible with generous support from the City of Waterloo and the Kitchener-Waterloo Community Foundation. Read more about the Platform Series here.
The X Page: A Storytelling Workshop is a community arts initiative that connects women who are immigrants or refugees with artists who assist and mentor them in writing and performing their own stories. The X Page is the opposite of a blank page: it’s the space where we enter into an image using all of our senses. Throughout the 12-week writing and performance workshop, participants develop a personal narrative, and work collaboratively to bring their individual stories together into a cohesive presentation. The project culminates with a performance before a live theatre audience and their stories are published here.
Table of Contents
Rana Alsafi, “Unexpected Gift”
Olga Barmina, “When the Shoe Fits.”
Uzma Bhutto, “Green Avocado Bag”
Maha Eid, “My Cherished Siblings”
Hamideh Eltejaei, “The Patchwork Story”
Dani Guse, “The Invisible Border”
Amna Kulsoom, “A Day at School”
Peggy Law, “I love Who I am Because He Chose to Love me”
Margaret Emilia Looker, “‘You’re late!'”
Nermin Ozdemir, “Things I Wish I’d Known: A Letter to Myself Before Leaving Turkey 16 Years Ago”
Yomatie Persaud, “Role Reversal”
Paulina Rodriguez, “Teachings of Nature”
Pooneh Torabian, “The Piano Teacher”
Umut Uzunel, “Sitting at the Back of the Classroom”
Ati Zar, “The Chemistry of Calligraphy”
